wyrmrestfandomcom-20200216-history
Maerlyn Eldham
High Inquisitor |race= Forsaken |gender=Male |age=Mid-late 70s |height= 6'5" |weight= 180 lbs. |birthplace =Hearthglen, Lordaeron |residence=Tarren Mill, Hillsbrad Foothills |guild=Royal Apothecary Society |affiliations=The Cult of Forgotten Shadows The Scarlet Crusade |alignment= |faction=Horde |class=Priest, Inquisitor |factionicon = Horde}} Maerlyn Arthur Eldham (born c. 547 K.C.) is a former Scarlet High Inquisitor, priest of the Cult of Forgotten Shadows, and former high apothecary of Branch 27-B of the Royal Apothecary Society. Within the branch, he led the department of Research & Development. In life, during his tenure with the Scarlet Crusade, he was feared for his ruthless methods of punishment and interrogation, utilizing both Holy and Shadow magic to extract loyalty from dissenters and punish heretics within and without the zealous organization. He was slain by one of the Crusade's own knights while defending the city of Stratholme from an incursion by the Argent Dawn. His body was stolen by Forsaken agents during the same incursion, after which it was transported to the Undercity and reanimated by the Val'kyr. Throughout the Fourth War, Maerlyn operated out of Tarren Mill in the Hillsbrad Foothills where he oversaw his apothecaries and led a fanatically loyal sect of shadow cultists. Following the death of Varok Saurfang and the flight of Sylvanas Windrunner, he vanished from the public eye. A staunch, outspoken Sylvanas loyalist, many presumed that Maerlyn had gone into hiding. This was later confirmed when he appeared publicly for the first time in months at a meeting of the Horde War Council, expressing his continued loyalty to the Dark Lady, but offering his aid to the Horde in their battle against N'Zoth the Corruptor. Life Early Life & Education Born in Hearthglen some fifty years before the opening of the Dark Portal, Maerlyn Arthur Eldham spent much of his life as a clergyman in the Lordaeronian church, and was known as a kind man who spread charity and good will to all he encountered, intent on preaching the Light's benevolence to the downtrodden and wealthy alike. Educated in religion and philosophy in the capital city, the young man was considered an immensely prodigious intellect whose capacity for thought and reasoning was matched only by his commitment to ministering to his fellow man, and upholding the laws and structures that governed the kingdom. He was also noted to have an unusually commanding, persuasive voice—a voice that many considered an invaluable asset, as a significant degree of oratory skill was essential for those among the priesthood. Having also received vocal lessons from an early age, Maerlyn became well-accustomed to leading congregations in songs and praises, possessing a strong, operatic singing style. The young priest's first ministerial diocese was located in the town of Brill, where he spent nearly a decade befriending and teaching much of the populace, who came to respect him greatly. It was during this time that he met Eleanor Fleming, whom he would eventually marry before leaving the burgeoning township. Shortly after marrying, the two relocated to the capital city of Lordaeron. The Shadow & The Scarlet Crusade After years of a peaceful life together, just before the onset of the First War, Eleanor tragically perished on a seaward voyage and the once steadfast holy man was left shattered and inconsolable. This great personal calamity awakened in him a darkness that was intensified by his unexplained acquisition of a mysterious bauble through which he began delving into the knowledge of the Shadow. By the time the kingdom of Lordaeron found itself in the grip of the Scourge, the once gracious Maerlyn had become cold and severe, and after the kingdom fell, he joined with the Scarlet Crusade, intent on purging the taint from his homeland. The erosion of his humanity already well underway, Maerlyn served in the ranks of the Crusade by assisting with the exposure and punishment of heretics and dissenters, eventually working his way up to become a high inquisitor in the Scarlet Bastion at Stratholme. Even by those among an organization known for its extreme cruelty and numerous atrocities, Maerlyn was feared and hated. Death At the pinnacle of his reign of terror however, he was slain by a rogue Crimson Legion templar, who was accompanied by agents of the Argent Dawn that stormed the city following the revelation of Balnazzar as the possessor of Grand Crusader Dathrohan. In the ensuing chaos, with many of the Scarlet Crusade and the Crimson Legion being slaughtered and raised into undeath, the high inquisitor's body was discovered by Forsaken agents who had been following his movements across the Plaguelands. Maerlyn's body was retrieved and transported to the Undercity, where Forsaken High Command deemed him worthy of reanimation, knowing that his penchant for exposing traitors and religious dedication to inspiring loyalty would be a great asset to the Banshee Queen. Undeath The Cult of Forgotten Shadows Fervently committed to his dark new charge, the erstwhile Scarlet Inquisitor immediately served the Forsaken with a zeal worthy of his former affiliations, and began to work diligently within the Cult of Forgotten Shadows to unite the Forsaken's disparate religious sects. Instead of the militaristic, efficient organization he had expected, Maerlyn found disunity and silence. This caused him to adopt a different approach to stirring Forsaken religion, favoring the shadows where once he stood in the light. In time, after the war in Pandaria and the subsequent deposition of Garrosh Hellscream as warchief of the Horde, Maerlyn had amassed a significant number of followers and allies among those still devoted to the teachings of the Shadow. Some had been allegiances formed during the man's life that were rekindled in undeath as fallen Lordaeronians were reunited; others, however, had only embraced the controversial teachings of Natalie Seline after having returned from the dead to become Forsaken. The Royal Apothecary Society After years of dabbling in his own alchemy and toxins useful for torture and information extraction, Maerlyn joined the Royal Apothecary Society, where he continued to refine his practices and seek out those loyal to the doctrines of shadow that he had embraced in the later years of his life. This did not occur until some time during the Legion's third and final invasion of Azeroth, though before long Maerlyn found himself in good standing with the Society and valued by his colleagues for his contributions and unconquerable devotion to Sylvanas. Within a year's time, he was promoted to the rank of High Apothecary and given his own department to oversee. During the Fourth War, Maerlyn led a department of researchers and chemists in production of blight and war machinery to supplement the Horde and Forsaken army in their campaigns across Kul Tiras, Darkshore, and the Eastern Kingdoms. After the war's end and Sylvanas's abdication of the warchief title along with her complete renunciation of the Horde, he too disappeared, presumably to follow his queen in whatever dark mission she has embarked upon. He was succeeded as a high apothecary of Branch 27-B by Thea Redmane. Maerlyn later appeared at a gathering of the Horde War Council, confirming his continued loyalty to Sylvanas Windrunner but offering his aid to the Horde in their battle against N'Zoth the Corruptor so long as they would accept it. Some speculate that this is a move to eventually reclaim his position within the Royal Apothecary Society, though he has not openly given any clear indication of such motives. Physical Description A tall, imposing figure with an equally commanding voice, Maerlyn is often clad in dark, regal robes that conceal the decay experienced by his aged body and hide the wound that ended his life—a single thrust of a greatsword through the man's chest. His hair, a deep dark brown in his younger years, eventually faded to white. In undeath, it has become almost dirty blonde in appearance, a result of the naturally progressing decay experienced by his body. Having lived around seventy years before being raised into undeath, his gaunt figure bears all of the hallmarks of advanced age. His mastery of the Light and Shadow however, as well as the necromantic magic that raised him, make him nonetheless capable and relentlessly driven, both in body and mind. Personality Maerlyn possesses an extraordinary willpower. Devoting himself zealously to the Light for many decades, and increasingly more to the Shadow as well in his later years, he learned the secrets to guarding oneself against the natural reaction to pain, as well as steeling the mind against forces that would unhinge it. Despite this, the increase of his cruelty and apathy as he delved deeper into the Shadow suggests that his mind has indeed been altered by lingering in the darkness too long. Even after his reanimation, Maerlyn still wields the Light in equal measure, though as with all undead who attempt this, the act of doing so with any prolonged intensity causes him a tremendous amount of agony. Nevertheless, the former inquisitor's will is iron. His discipline and training to resist and subvert the effects of pain allow him to continue practicing his magic without completely losing his mind, as some have. It is perhaps his success at retaining his connection to the Light that has profoundly influenced Maerlyn's perspective on unlife, and his staunch belief that undeath is not a curse, but a gift reserved for those chosen by the Shadow to enter into a new evolution of mankind, ascending to a new level of mental fortitude and putting off the hindrances of a living body, such as age and susceptibility to pain or insanity. In spite of his fierce loyalty to Sylvanas and the Forsaken, and his unwavering belief in their cause, Maerlyn is nevertheless mistrustful and dismissive of the more "barbaric" and "bestial" races (as he sees them), regarding only humans, elves, and fellow Forsaken as equals. His tolerance of all others and willingness to partner with them as allies within the Horde is indicative of his resolve to see the Forsaken triumph—though it is a thin tolerance at best, and he is never slow to levy ample disdain upon "the mongrel races", be they friend or foe. Quotes To be added. External Links Maerlyn Eldham @ WoW Armory Category:Forsaken Category:Priest Category:Horde Priest Category:Scarlet Crusade Category:Characters Category:Royal Apothecary Society